If your FMCG products don’t have a differentiator

Don’t kid yourself, your product is just like all the other products. That sweet teaspoon or two you add to your coffee every morning - do you know the difference between the brand you are using and the next?

Every spoonful of sugar tastes the same, but does the service you provide leave the same sweet taste in the mouth of your customer.

And the succulent white meat you prepare for dinner - does it really taste so good because they eat so good?

Sure it has to pass the quality standard and be hygienic and clean etc, But at the end of the day, it is about the key-account service, or the merchandising service or the sales rep service or the financial team or the CEO, involvement and the professional service and knowledge of the customers business , that you give, that will score you the winning goals.

So answering the question of whether the customer knows the difference, the short answer is of course,... no!

No matter how much we want to tell ourselves that the opposite is true, the customer cannot always tell the difference between products with very little intrinsic difference, except when the supplier shows great empathy and care to his business. It is about the superior service and follow up and product information that you can give, that will help you get the edge.It is about relationship marketing.

Your marketing team can have one,” bosberaad “,after another to come up with the ideal USP to differentiate your brand in the market, but the magic formula to set yourself apart is, and always will be, how well the customer is being serviced.

In the FMCG world, customer experience is your golden ticket!

Lead, follow or get out of the way

The term customer-centric has become so widely used that it has almost lost its meaning. But think for a minute on the true meaning of the jargon. To really impact the experience a customer has when interacting with your company, you need to inject a seamless level of professionalism into your organisation.

This focus on the customer starts at the top and MUST flow down into the organisation, in torrents, NOT trickle down. It must permeate through the entire organisation. It has to get into the core of your business - from the call centre to the sales centre, to on-time deliveries, to the right quantities, efficient and effective packaging and building relationships with customers. Make sure that everyone from the CEO to the sweeper on the factory floor are all properly and professionally aligned to provide 7/52/365 service that is world-class.

Mediocre service should not be tolerated. Service should be fit for a king and a queen.

The Royal Couple

The customer, in retail, is king. Your entire organization needs to be realigned to focus on the king. The king is the one that will place the order, price your product correctly, promote your products and keep the conduit open for doing repeat business.

We all know that behind every successful man, there is a woman - our king is no different!

The queen is the consumer. She will be back the next time to shop. You had better make sure your product or service has improved as this is where the “tekkie hits the tar”! To buy or NOT to buy…that is the question?

Make sure your marketing, sales and customer service teams understand the interaction of the royal couple within your business. Providing the king and queen with the royal service they deserve, sets your company up for the ROI you deserve!

The Customer is NOT a Pain in the Neck

We have all had the experience of trying to navigate the isles of a retail store in search of a specific item. More often than not, finding someone to assist you is almost as impossible as finding the item you are looking for. And when found, the service you receive is more likely to leave you feeling as though you are an inconvenience. This customer experience does foster customer relationships or inspire return business! In this regard, three things stand out for me:

1. Make sure your sales team is trained professionally and then given ongoing training to make them competent, professional and more energetic and motivated.
2. Build a team of highly trained merchandisers and salespeople that can truly represent your business in a different and professional way. They are the frontline ambassadors of your organisation. Make sure you equip them with the right tools.
3. Sales reps and merchandisers are at the sharp end of the business. They are the ones who will help you win.

It all boils down to establishing a company-wide culture of wanting all customers to have a great experience when they cross paths with your business.

I don’t see it on the shelf…

...do you perhaps have stock in the back stockroom? How often have you had to ask this question in a retail situation?

You have to realise that you cannot sell any products from the storeroom! In all my years of running sales teams, I have never seen a customer browsing the shelves in the stockroom. If your product is NOT visible on the shelves, the customer simply buys the competitor product and if that experience is satisfactory, you may have lost that consumer forever.

If you cannot execute, you’re finished!

Avoid Complacency

In any job, even the most exciting and adventurous and day-to-day activities,eventually become routine. Even if your job is ziplining off mountains or taming tigers, you can only do so many trips to the ground or befriend so many felines before it becomes mundane or even boring.

This is also valid for the interaction between frontline staff and customers. Disinterest in the job can affect customers who may feel neglected and overlooked,and this has a serious negative knock-on effect on your entire operation.

See to it that you keep the momentum going, and that you adopt some professional training and that you monitor customer service satisfaction on an on- going basis.Your sales people and other frontline staff in the business, need to be trained and retrained to ensure they stay sharp and remain focussed. The energy needs to be there all the time and the fire always needs to be kept burning with passion, to do the job properly all the time.This will enable you to change the culture of the business to one in which the customer remains the most important person in the business.